Final Word from Thursday, March 6, 2003
Everyone who can find Prague on the map is trying to guess Václav Klaus' next moves. Three of the foreign papers we follow - Wall Street Journal Europe, Le Monde and Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung - see potential pros and cons of a Klaus presidency. The WSJE stressed Klaus' economic failures as premier and said he needs to practice what he preaches as president. Le Monde said he could become a fearful opponent of Valéry Giscard d'Estaing's efforts to draw up an EU constitution. It took solace in the fact that Klaus, though not a Francophile, sees eye-to-eye with Paris and Berlin on Iraq. The FAZ was the most optimistic, saying that Klaus' election was a good thing and that Czech-German relations could be more transparent and straightforward than under Havel. The FAZ gave the impression to readers that Klaus is someone the Germans can do business with. France Germany war